Rise and Fall of Arela

The College of Kharlin

Where the group ponders ethics for no reason

1

AUG/17

Like any good prison breakout movie, we didn’t go in a linear, one story arc. We took three tacks because, as you will see, separating the party is really the best way to go about screwing everybody over.e
We decided to take three different routes.
1. Temple Travels – Vyktor, Iggie and Artas were going to go to the Temples of Alion and Abbadar to try to talk to the high priests about Vyktor’s mom and the horrible, magic box.
2. Follow that Man – Drael was going to go stalk Arden and see if he could figure out any info on the restricted space of the college for intel on the whereabouts of Vyktor’s mom.
3. Sneaky shit is best – Polycarp entered the undercity for three goals
a. Find a back way into the tower
b. Find a map of the college
c. Find out who killed his parents and why
Scene 1:
Vytkor, Iggie and Artas (now known as VIA) head to the Temple of Alion, but nobody was really home. All the clerics have left the city and have headed north.
In the Temple of Abbadar, they see the head dude, but he is speaking to some richies. Vyktor slides over and creeps on their personal space so that eventually the priest talks to them and the richies take a hike.
The high priest unsurprisingly doesn’t believe anything they have to say about Vyktor’s Mom, the box or the gubmint of Kharlin being sons of bitches. He says, “Vyktor’s mom is a traitor. Oh shit, you’re a paladin of Abbadar! You ain’t going nowhere.” And tells them that he’s going to go check on the box and seals and check out the story. And he says when he saw the box last time, there were four seals left unopened. And Iggie can’t leave the temple until he gets back because they’re going to use him as a healing machine.
Scene 2:
Drael stalks Arden at the college, bumps into him and invites Arden to dinner to talk about ruins and shit. Oh, and constructs we found in the temple near the cabin in the woods. Arden starts acting all sketchy and shit, but Drael rolls low and really thinks they’re hitting it off. Arden invites Drael back to the “lab” to see some things. I think this will end very well.
Scene 3:
Polycarp stakes out a spot in the undercity near the college. When a mark, I mean student, comes out of the college and into the undercity, he creeps behind him, steals his notebook and then tells the kid that he found his notebook on the ground. They talk and it turns out kid works in a bar. They go to a bar filled with Drow. Polycarp buys rounds of drinks for a group of Drow. After some small talk, Polycarp asks them if they know how to get into the school from the undercity. One knows “a guy.” The bartender overhears all this and Polycarp makes a side deal with him to get people who can get into the restricted area. Kid says nobody likes him. Polycarp asks if they’re going to have any trouble. Kid says no.

Scene 1:
Vyktor fakes his way into the library and they go about looking for a map of the college. Artas acts all creepy and shit at these guards in the special section of the library. “Hey, you take anybody back there you’re not supposed to??”
Vyktor reads a book.
Scene 3:
Drow take Polycarp to they guy and he pays down some gold and they find the dude. Polycarp makes a deal with the drow and finds the door.
Polycarp then decides to try to find the crew and hires a kid named Mouse to search the temple area. Finds out that they went to the college. Polycarp asks Mouse if he has any friends he can trust. So now Polycarp has six street urchins under his payola.
As Polycarp hangs out in front of the college waiting for the crew, he sees soldiers approaching. He thinks, “WHAT DIDYOU DO, RAY!!!”SCENE 2:EDITEDFORYOURPROTECTIONSCENE 1:
On their way out, Vyktor and Artas see all the soldiers and wonder if they are for them or not? Not taking any chances, Vyktor makes them invisible and they climb over the wall on the opposite side and head back to the flop house.
Scene 3:
Polycarp is bored. Goes back into the undercity and has some beers and walks back and forth from bar to station and finds nothing. Head back to flophouse.
At the flophouse:
With the crew – Drael back at the flophouse, C3PO narcs that the dragon left and flew around the city and ate a goat. Also, is he becoming more dragony or Vardy? No Drael. [editor’s note: I don’t remember exactly what happens in the room, but the party – Drael decides to head for the college).
In the undercity:
The party makes its way back to the drow bar the next day, waiting for the college kids. They come. Polycarp makes a scene. They steal their signets and Vyktor scrambles their brains and make the bartender kid look like aces. Who cares, off to the college…..THEPARTWHERETHEYPARTYGETSINTO A PHILOSOPHICALDISCUSSION ON THELINEBETWEENCOMBATDEATHANDMURDER. HINT: EVERYBODY IS WRONG
As they make their way to the door, Polycarp sneaks up and sees two guards. Polycarp tell the group and says, I’ll take them out. Artas, playing the part of Iggie, balks and says no way, let’s talk to them. Polycarp can’t believe his ears. Vyktor has a moral dilemma and asks Raven to do something which she refuses. The conversation goes on for a long time with some other strategies like making Polycarp invisible and knocking them out. Suddenly, Vyktor snatches Raven and thrusts her into his bag of holding and says to Polycarp, “Do it.”
Polycarp needs no other invitation. He sneaks up and let’s a barrage of arrows into the unsuspecting guards….only to find out they are clockwork constructs! All that moral mumbo jumbo for nothing.
The battle is fierce! Artas is knocked out not once by twice! But the team prevails.
Polycarp makes easy work of the door and they are in the bottom basement of the college with the spiral staircase in the middle.
I’m getting tired of typing so I’ll make this quick.
Up stairs.
Fight two guards who have magic. Polycarp does so much damage to one that he falls over and bleeds to death. Glorious.
Through that room is a hallway. Then they are confronted by an Aqueous orb and two dire gorillas. Then spiders. Then Polycarp and Vyktor are Glitteredusted. IT’S DRAEL! He has a magic collar on his neck!! He tells the party, “I don’t want to hurt you, you should just go!”
Vyktor casts dispel evil on him and frees him of his domination.
Polycarp finds Vyktor’s mom, unlocks the door (but trips an exploding trap which does not hurt him! HA!). Priest of Abaddar and Iggie are in other cells. They are all naked. Vyktor’s mom has collar. Raven flies into cells of priest and iggie and turns them into gaseous form and uses her little wings to get them out.
Meanwhile, after 1000000000 perception checks, Artas hears a noise coming from a door. He doesn’t open it and then 3 clay constructs come out. Then he is hit by a fireball from down the other end of a hallway and is knocked out again. Polycarp is dragging naked Vyktor’s mom while he and Drael are trying to help Artas.
I think that is where we left it. Some other stuff happened, but this is the main parts. Feel free to amend whatever I have messed up.
Quote of the night for me:
Tyler: “I like this side of Polycarp.”

Comments

Corrections:
- I took 2 whole fireballs before I went down. I don’t want the idea getting around that a single fireball can take me out.
- Obviously, the quote of the night was the response to “can someone unconscious be willing” with “Well they aren’t unwilling, I’ll allow it.”
- You left out the part where Vyktor walks out into the open and gets himself Hellfire blasted in the face.

Yeah lets not forget Vykters horrible burns…. Good job though Michael, you get 2 Coins. I’ll give some one else a coin also if they clean it up and fill in the blanks, (I believe you guys scryed on Drael to find out what happened to him. Also I am impressed you didn’t Metagame and go some place other than your flop house room to Scry on him.)